Кэйго Хигасино - The Name of the Game is a Kidnapping

Juri gave back a sharp look as though to say, I know that . We were good as long as she could make such a face.

I left the condo and got on the subway like usual. I looked at my reflection in the glass and was satisfied. No matter how you looked at it, it was the face of a man going to work. I didn’t see someone perpetrating a kidnapping and blackmailing a family. In what kind of world did a kidnapper head to work in an Armani suit?

In my humble opinion, crime wasn’t such a big deal. Mercenary crimes, in particular, were no different from work. Instead of trying to come up with ways to evade a net of legalities, you took precautions not to get caught in the police’s radar. Blackmail was the same as a deal. In fact, compared to negotiations with stubborn clients, it was almost simple fun.

I told Juri we’d crossed a line, but I didn’t really think that was the case. If it started to look too risky, I could just hurry and retreat. Keeping Juri from talking wasn’t hard. She, herself, would want to hide her involvement in a staged kidnapping. I wasn’t scared even about getting caught. I’d just say that she’d talked me into going along with her prank. She’d assert that I was the one who suggested it, but she’d have no proof. And then this was the biggest thing: the victim, Katsutoshi Katsuragi, would probably be afraid of the public finding out the truth.

Of course, right now, backtracking wasn’t on my mind. I’d never faced a challenge and failed. I would beat this game, too.

Boring chores awaited me at work. A movie featuring a popular girl singer and its videogame tie-up, to be sold in tandem — it was too tedious a job to be handled by a grown man. During the meeting, I was thinking of a way to retrieve the ransom money. That was far more amusing.

After getting back to my seat, I accessed the internet again on my computer. I checked the homepage, but there was no reply from Katsutoshi Katsuragi.

So he was still consulting with the police? I somewhat regretted not having set a deadline. It was quite likely that they’d stall.

“What are you looking at?” a voice came from my back.

I closed the window on my desktop even before I could guess whose voice it was. When I turned around, Sugimoto was in a half-crouch. Had he been looking at my computer screen until now?

“Did you find some fun site?” he layered it on me.

“No, I was just killing time.” If this man had made out the website I’d been looking at, that spelled trouble. “I thought I’d collect some information on the idol movie.”

“Ah, you mean the Yumi Kurihara vehicle where she becomes a game character?”

“Right, that.”

“That’s difficult.”

Sugimoto had a look of pity and superiority on his face. He probably thought our positions were now completely reversed.

Anyway, I couldn’t let him know what web page I’d been checking.

“Didn’t you have another meeting with Nissei today?” I asked.

“Uh, we were supposed to, but I suddenly got a message that it’s been canceled.”

“Was it Nissei who canceled?”

“Yes. Apparently, Mr. Katsuragi wasn’t going to be able to make it.”

“Mr. Katsuragi?”

“I don’t see why their EVP needs to be there, but as far as this project goes, we can’t continue without him.” Having said this, Sugimoto seemed to think he’d gone too far in my presence, and left with a See ya .

I tapped my desk with my fingertips. Receiving a ransom letter from kidnappers had been enough to make even Katsutoshi Katsuragi fret. Right around now, he was probably looking pale at home.

When it got to be lunch, I left the office and ate at a nearby café. Sipping coffee, I thought again about how I would get the ransom money.

Three hundred million yen had quite a bit of volume. It would probably take more than one bag to hold. Even if it didn’t, carrying it would be no cakewalk.

Kidnappers got caught because they weren’t smart about getting the ransom money. Conversely, for the police, that was the best time for nabbing the perp. I had to outwit the police, who’d be on guard against an array of methods.

When I got back to my workplace after finishing my coffee, the mood had shifted in some way. In particular, some of the employees were rushing about. I grabbed a junior near me and asked him if something had happened.

“Well, it’s really bad. It seems Nissei Automobile’s EVP is on his way.”

“You mean Mr. Katsuragi? Here? Why?”

The junior shook his head. “We don’t really know. Apparently there was a sudden call just now. Thanks to that, the staff on the new car campaign is panicking.”

“Huh...”

I was a little confused. What was going on? What kind of person headed to work when his daughter had been kidnapped, even if it was the child of a mistress?

There seemed to be only one possibility. Katsutoshi Katsuragi still hadn’t seen the ransom letter. His understanding, no doubt, was that his ill-behaved daughter was out on an unpermitted sleepover.

So the ransom letter hadn’t reached him? Or it had, and he just hadn’t read it? If it was the latter, it wasn’t a problem, but the former would be something of a headache. I’d have to look into why it hadn’t arrived.

I took the phone from my desk and called my condo. If there was some problem with the Katsuragis’ fax machine, I wanted to check in with Juri. But after three rings, I remembered. I’d told her not to pick up.

I helplessly started up my computer again and accessed the internet. I visited the CPT Owners Club. I checked the bulletin board.

As soon as I did, I nearly cried out loud. It was because I found the following post:

Wish To Purchase (Julie)

Hello everyone. My name is Julie. I was invited to buy a CPT, so I tried riding one. But it was really expensive, so gathering the funds will take some time. I thought I should also inquire after the contract details.

I didn’t think that a handle like Julie was a coincidence. And the text certainly seemed to be accepting the deal. In other words, this was a message from Katsutoshi Katsuragi.

As I sat there dumbfounded, someone unexpectedly patted my shoulder. It was Kozuka.

“President...”

“Sorry, while you’re working, but...” He lowered his voice. “Could you come with me? I think you’ve heard, but Mr. Katsuragi is on his way. I want you to be present.”

I grimaced. “Why me, after all that? I’m finished, no? A has-been.”

Kozuka waved his hand in front of a weary face. “Now don’t get nasty. Actually, Mr. Katsuragi said something strange.”

“Something strange? What is it this time?”

“I don’t know, but it seems he wants to see some games.”

“Games?”

“Games that we handle. He’s picked out about ten products and wants to hear explanations about what they’re about and why they were developed. I don’t really know what his aim is, but it seems to be another foothold for planning the new car campaign.”

“Such a strange thing to do.”

“I agree. But he says he wants to see them, so we can’t not show him.”

“Okay, and why am I being called too?”

“One of the games he selected is something you worked on. When we’re prompted to explain it, I want you to respond.”

“So that’s what this is.”

I sighed with resignation and stood up from my chair.

Even so, what I didn’t understand was Katsutoshi Katsuragi’s behavior. Responding on the bulletin board meant he’d read the ransom letter for certain. What kind of father calmly went to work when his daughter had been kidnapped? Or maybe he didn’t think the ransom letter was real? He’d followed the instructions and left a reply but thought of it as nothing more than a prank? Did he mean to say that panicking about this degree of a situation was laughable?